New Engines Prove Range Rovers Should Only Have Diesel Power

Our first drive of the newest Range Rover powertrain.

Land Rover

By
Vasco Vermuelen

Sep 2, 2015

For 2016, and available mid-fall, 2015, you'll be able to get a Range Rover or Range Rover Sport with a diesel V-6 that makes 440 lb. ft. of torque at just 1750rpm. The new engine is called the Td6 and gives a big kick in the 4709-pound caboose of either model—the supercharged V-6 gas motor has to wind to 3500rpm to yield its considerably meeker 332 lb. ft. output.

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But…you're betting the diesel Td6 RRs outweigh the gas V-6 editions, right? Wrong: They're actually 18 pounds lighter. And they're just about as quick: The Range Rover Sport Td6 gets to 60 mph in 7.1 seconds, while the Range Rover will do it in 7.4 seconds, compared to 6.9 / 7.1 seconds for V-6 gas models.

And even though Americans are currently enjoying dirt-cheap gasoline, it's hard to argue against either the 32 percent improvement in fuel economy (estimated 22 city/29 highway) or the astonishing 658-mile range between fill-ups.

All of this is welcome news, and Land Rover expects a take rate of at least 20 percent (especially considering the price bump is a mere $1500 over the gas V-6 option; $66,450 for the Sport and $93,450 for the Range Rover).

Land Rover

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Testing the duo on mountain two-laners north of Barcelona, the Td6 proved its substantial advantage, especially during 40-60mph uphill tromps, when passing windows were ultra-short and we needed right-now muscle. Yes, the Range Rover and Sport are still heavy and windy mountain roads aren't necessarily their forte. Physics aren't going to be defied. Still, what the diesel brings is tangibly crisp highway acceleration. If you want yet more testosterone you can always opt for yet more torque—the V-8 Range Rover Sport churns out 461 lb. ft. of twist. But they'll ding your wallet for an additional $8,500 and you'll be facing a precipitous drop in fuel economy (14 city/19 highway) vs the diesel.

Naturally, the V-8 also adds about 300 pounds to the chassis, something you'd no doubt feel in the driving experience.

Speaking of which, the Td6's immediate low-end grunt also proved exceptional in the dirt. After all, you cannot properly test a Land Rover product without acing an off-camber slither up the side of a 40-degree rock face. To do so, back away from the brake and throttle and wave a magic wand (actually, twist the dial just beside your right elbow) to switch on the optional All-Terrain Progress Control. Now adjust the cruise control to set the speed of approach, and the system does the rest, gently applying throttle to all four wheels, sensing for wheel slip, and likewise applying brake pressure to any single wheel to control descent speed off the backside of any mountain or molehill.

Land Rover

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What about diesel clatter? There's none. At least not from within the cabin. Significant sound-deadening was added to the firewall, there's double-insulated glass in the windscreen, and the engine itself is cast in an ultrastiff graphite-iron block. The latter helps prevent unsettling idle vibration.

Much of the credit for the Td6 engine should go to Peter Wright, vehicle engineering manager at Land Rover. The 57-year-old Wright is a typically buttoned-up Brit who knows (but won't outright say) that diesel Land Rovers make far more sense than their gas equivalents. Wright has perspective—he's been at the brand since the 1980s through ownership by BMW, Ford and now Tata, and helped engineer the first direct-injection 2.5-liter diesel for the Discovery back in 1990. "This became THE engine. It made Discovery affordable to those moving out of large saloons or estates. I used to get about 30 mpg (UK) out of mine." Wright says when the engine went into the Defender, "The gasoline Defender all but died. From that point on diesel became the predominant fit for Discovery and Defender."

Wright explains that the Td6 may be new to American buyers, but that for diesel buyers worldwide some of the innovations had to come regardless. That's because like diesels from Land Rover's European rivals, this engine gets urea injection, which significantly cleans up NOx emissions—a necessity to meet Europe's ultra strict new Euro 6 pollution standards that have just gone into effect. Wright points out that unlike most systems, the Td6 uses what the company calls Low Pressure Exhaust Gas Recirculation (EGR). The distinction: High pressure systems recirculate particulates from the exhaust manifold directly to the inlet manifold, resulting in higher temperatures, which actually creates more NOx in the process. To get to very low NOx, the lower pressure system essentially delays the moment of recirculation back to the turbo and an intercooler, and as a result, there's less NOx and Land Rover says that will result in lower required intervals to refill the DEF/AdBlue urea fluid. The recommendation is every 10,000 miles, which dovetails with Audi and Mercedes, but the frequency may actually be lower in reality.

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Land Rover

Asked about whether diesel Land Rovers might one day entirely obviate the production of gas engines worldwide, Wright's not betting on it (even though U.S. buyers will increasingly see every Jaguar-Land Rover product get a diesel engine option). "I was once in charge of hot weather testing for our cars and we'd send them to the Mideast. Our guys would come back and their bills for water were more than for gas. Those buyers just want the biggest, most powerful gasoline V-8 kit they can get their hands on!"